One of my most favorite things to do is build terrariums. In fact, it was one of the first Sunday dates that Ryan and I had--sitting on the front porch after a day of picking out plants, jars, and pebbles to create a mini eco-system. So the other day, when I told a friend of mine that I like to build terrariums for fun, she asked me if I ever blogged about it. My answer was a simple, "No..." which led me to wonder why I never have. Then I got to thinking about why I never blog about anything crafty that I actually do. I guess the thought never occurred to me, which is just ridiculous. In any event, over the weekend, I decided to do some major planting and the end result came out better than I expected, if I do say so myself. So here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to make one for yourself, too!

First, gather your materials.

Then, assemble. I like to do it in this order:

Lay down the pebbles--this base layer can be as thick or as thin as you'd like.

Add the activated charcoal. I do a thin layer of this. This acts as a filter for the water/moisture that will circulate in your closed container.

Scoop in the potting soil. I like to fill my apothecary jar with the soil in sort of a slant so that a little "hill" is created. Pack the soil in tight.

Add your ferns, moss, and other objects you might want in your terrarium; in my case, I just added some more of the pebbles I used from the base layer.

That's it! I like to spritz my plants with a fair amount of water before putting the lid on. After that, you only need to re-water about once every couple of months. If you notice that it's too damp in your terrarium, remove the lid for about an hour to air it out, but remember to put it back on, otherwise your terrarium will dry out.

Lastly, if you want to build an open terrarium using succulents, follow all the above directions but in the last step, instead of adding ferns, moss, and/or other moisture-heavy plants, add your succulents and cover the soil with a layer of white sand.